Quasi-Bifurcation of Rods Within an Axial Plastic Compressive Wave

Abstract

A quasi-bifurcation criterion for determining certain infinitesimal disturbances which may amplify with time in an elastic-plastic body subject to prescribed initial, kinematic and time-dependent traction boundary conditions is employed to explain the onset of buckling of rods by axial impact. The experimental results of Abrahamson and Goodier indicate that rods impacting a rigid target at velocities sufficient to produce finite axial strains are found to buckle plastically with fairly reproducible final buckling modes. The predicted quasi-bifurcation modes at the onset of instability are in qualitative agreement with the observed final buckling modes.